Monona committee discusses possible deconstruction ordinance; members advise coordination with county landfill plans

The Sustainability Committee discussed whether to pursue a deconstruction‑focused ordinance to require or encourage material salvage in place of demolition, and members advised coordination with Dane County landfill plans before drafting regulation.

Theresa recapped a previous Landmarks Commission presentation distinguishing deconstruction (material salvage and reuse) from demolition. Committee members noted Monona’s constrained development pattern often requires demolition before new construction, raising the potential value of ordinances that encourage material recovery.

Ken highlighted ongoing Dane County work to develop a reprocessing center at the county landfill to divert construction and demolition materials into recycling streams and suggested the committee align any local policy with county timetables and capacities. He said the county facility might change tipping fees or accept‑list rules, which could achieve many diversion goals without imposing local developer requirements prematurely.

Members proposed staff reach out to two contacts: the Dane County landfill reprocessing project and County Board representative Sarah Smith (a former committee member and current county board member) to determine county timelines and capacity. Thor and other staff said basic information requests to the county and board representative would be reasonable without imposing a heavy work burden on city staff.

The committee did not draft an ordinance at the meeting; rather, members agreed it would be appropriate to request information and return with a recommendation after learning county plans and reviewing model ordinances from larger municipalities (Madison and Milwaukee were mentioned as models).